What is Writing in the Liberal Arts and Sciences II? (continued)

The goal of this course is to teach academic research as a tool for critical thinking that provides the basis for well-developed arguments. Through a multigenre approach, this course requires synthesis, analysis, and application of information through writing in a variety of rhetorical forms for a variety of audiences. Students are asked to research and discuss a variety of social issues through the use of selected readings from modern essayists and the available library resources.

Multigenre writing asks the researcher to think and write in multiple ways, rather than simply one way dictated by the professor. Multigenre writing is about being able to demonstrate in definable terms that, based on the students’ understanding of the information or situation, they are able to draw conclusions and support their point of view. Students are learning that knowledge is something that cannot be taken away; it is part of the framework of their understanding of the world.

With Multigenre writing there is transfer from the classroom to the world beyond.  As students work with multiple genres, their minds run the gamut of the critical thinking scale.  Students are asked to interpret information and this demonstrates comprehension.  In the process of conducting research and writing a Multigenre paper, analysis in constant.  Students must deconstruct a scenario and compare its component parts with that of other scenarios, and then bring it all back together in such a way as to demonstrate that they have proven their thesis, drawn conclusions, and built an argument that follows to a logical conclusion.

More often than not, students writing multigenre research papers find success in using their unique intelligences to address their unique challenges.  Multigenre writing prepares students to be thinkers, problem solvers, and to convey their thoughts, reasoning, and conclusions in a cohesive way.  It is a life long skill that will serve NEC students well.